Woodstown and Swedesboro Railroad

The Woodstown and Swedesboro Railroad was incorporated on March 21, 1871.^[1] At the time, Woodstown, New Jersey, lacked direct rail service. The Salem Railroad, completed in 1863, passed several miles to the south.^[2] In 1869, the Swedesboro Railroad reached Swedesboro, New Jersey, roughly 7 miles (11 km) to the north.^[1] The new company had difficulty raising funds, and no work was done for over a decade.^[3]

The company was finally organized on January 21, 1882.^[1] The West Jersey Railroad, which had leased the Salem Railroad in 1868 and the Swedesboro Railroad in 1869, took an active interest in the project.^[3] The new line opened on February 1883, and the West Jersey Railroad formally leased the Woodstown and Swedesboro Railroad.^[4] At the southern end the line connected with the Salem Railroad's line at Riddleston, east of Salem. The new route shortened the distance from Camden to Salem, New Jersey, by 9 miles (14 km).^[3]

Under the Pennsylvania-Reading Seashore Lines the line between Woodbury and Salem was known as the Salem Branch.^[5] The Woodstown and Swedesboro Railroad, Swedesboro Railroad, Salem Railroad, Maurice River Railroad, Salem Branch Railroad, and West Jersey Terminal Railroad were consolidated with the West Jersey Railroad on December 31, 1887.^[6]

• Cook, W. George (2002). "Two Routes to Town: A History of Salem's Railroads". In Coxey, William J. (ed.). West Jersey rails: a series of stories about southern New Jersey railroad history. Vol. 3. Palmyra, New Jersey: West Jersey Chapter, National Railway Historical Society. pp. 30–41.
• Coverdale & Colpitts (1946). The Pennsylvania Railroad Company: The Corporate, Financial and Construction History of Lines Owned, Operated and Controlled To December 31, 1945, Volume IV Affiliated Lines, Miscellaneous Companies, and General Index. Philadelphia: Allen, Lane & Scott. OCLC 13172415.